The metal door shuddered open amid Old Liu's hysterical roar, and at that exact moment, every white crystal outside the palace fell away, revealing to the two men a truly magnificent scene clad in gold and jewels: a perfectly preserved Imperial palace.

“I didn't think my blood had truly merged with Mèishū's essence blood,” Old Liu growled, clearly having doubted his own clan’s secrets. He gritted his teeth at Yèxiū, “My blood wasn't spilled for nothing. Whatever treasures are inside this palace will be mine.”

Yèxiū nodded, indicating no objection. His sole reason for coming here was to find the Soul Stone that was supposedly his. Peering through the open golden gates, Yèxiū saw a long passage beyond. Although it was paved and lined with gold, it reminded him unpleasantly of the intestinal canal they had traversed earlier. He pointed toward the depths and asked, “Surely, there won't be some digestive fluid emerging from here again? I’d rather not run for my life like that again.”

Without considering the implications, Old Liu charged straight into the passage, carefully stroking the flakes of gold from the walls and sniffing them close to his nose. “How can this be?”

Yèxiū also found it strange. The passage was shaped like an inverted cylinder. Though they couldn't see the far end from the entrance, the wind blowing from that direction clearly carried a hint of moisture. This 'Fallen Palace' was clearly a mountain cave structure, meaning its core lay within the mountain itself. If the air held water vapor, it could only mean there was another hidden river inside this mountain. Yèxiū stepped forward and sniffed the gold dust on Old Liu’s hand. “This doesn’t smell like metal; it’s more like the scent of the Corpse Flower from before.”

Old Liu nodded with certainty. “Look at all this gold covering the floor and the walls painted with gold powder. Firstly, it’s to show off the palace’s splendor. Secondly, there must be another reason—to prevent the growth of the Corpse Flower.”

“You mean the Corpse Flowers are beneath this gold?” Yèxiū imagined the dark red, tightly closed buds again, feeling a wave of nausea, but it made sense. If this was Jié’s Soul Tomb built by Mèishū, she likely spent considerable time here herself. The place where her cursed clan members were summoned, as mentioned by the old woman, must be within this Palace of Eternal Lotus Dreams.

Without another word, Old Liu struck a nearby block of gold with his fist. Some sections produced a hollow sound, indicating the presence of something in the earth beneath. Discovering this, Old Liu immediately pulled out his Thin-Bladed Knife and drove it into the seam between two gold blocks. With a strong effort, he easily pried one gold slab loose. Beneath it, several small, writhing tendrils were indeed swaying slowly.

“It really is the Corpse Flower!” Yèxiū gasped. He had thought the Corpse Flower at the Night Raven Alley archway was the king of them all, but it now seemed the very mountain housing this palace might be the true breeding ground for the Corpse Flower.

Old Liu pried up several more gold blocks; traces of Corpse Flower tendrils were present to varying degrees underneath each one. He retracted his Thin-Bladed Knife and spoke calmly, “According to the old woman, those clan members became different after being summoned. I think Mèishū must have performed some kind of spell here, and it must be related to the Corpse Flower. Let's keep moving forward.”

Yèxiū followed behind, hands tucked into his sleeves, sounding bored. “Didn’t you say the Corpse Flower itself can turn people into zombies?”

“Of course, I know that. People exposed to the Corpse Flower's scent for too long turn into zombies. That ‘too long’ means at least half a year. I doubt Mèishū summoned her clan members over such an extended period,” Old Liu stated his deduction with a grave expression. “Mèishū must have used some other method; it can’t just be the Corpse Flower.”

“The old woman said that Lady Mèishū herself got involved with Jié out of jealousy. Later, when the Xia Dynasty fell and Jié died, she realized she had truly fallen in love with him. Do you think it’s possible she wanted to use this Corpse Flower to turn Jié into a zombie?” Yèxiū started picking up on details. “No! If you love someone, turning them into a mere zombie probably wouldn't be enough for her.”

“She wanted to resurrect Jié…” Old Liu shivered as he spoke the words. He stared intently at Yèxiū. “Mèishū was nurtured by an inauspicious black lotus; she must have her own magic. Perhaps she found a way to bring the dead Jié back to life.”

“Then her own clan members were her test subjects before she resurrected Jié!” Yèxiū realized they had finally hit the root of the matter and was ecstatic. “That’s why Mèishū summoned her clansmen wave after wave instead of everyone at once. She was experimenting, testing step-by-step how to resurrect someone, not just turn them into a zombie.”

“Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…” Just as the two thought they had reached a conclusion, the passage itself seemed to grow excited like them. Its shaking originated from the Corpse Flowers below. After being uncovered by Old Liu, those small tendrils could no longer restrain themselves and were ready to surge out and seize the two living men.

Yèxiū glanced at Old Liu without saying much. At this moment, running was the only action required; however, the growth rate of the Corpse Flower tendrils seemed instantaneous. They had found their prey and were relentlessly charging forward.

“Whoosh!” Old Liu took the lead, his Thin-Bladed Knife clearing the way, while Yèxiū picked up the Death Scythe, spinning it to ward off the tendrils snapping at their heels. After a tense stalemate, they finally spotted the end of the passage. To their surprise, the end of the tunnel opened into a massive cavern mouth, outside of which hung a rushing torrent of water—a scene reminiscent of Sun Wukong’s Water Curtain Cave.

Old Liu sprinted to the edge of the opening, leaning out too far and nearly falling. It turned out the entrance was suspended in mid-air; outside was clearly a huge waterfall, and the opening was several fathoms high above a continuously flowing river below.

“Hold off those Corpse Flowers, and I’ll see how we get down,” Old Liu said while leaning his body out of the opening. Instantly, he was drenched.

Yèxiū wielded his scythe to block the Corpse Flower tendrils with ease, but those things were endless. Blaming Old Liu for disturbing the protective gold, Yèxiū berated him, “Did you find a way out yet? Can you at least see if we should go up or jump down!”

“What way out? The rock face above this opening is invisible, and the river below is unfathomably deep. What do you suggest?” Old Liu was anxious too, standing at the edge unsure of what to do.

River water? The moment Yèxiū heard the word, his mind immediately flashed to the Styx River of Blood. If the water here was like that black water, he would rather find a way to climb the rock face. Yèxiū turned back and shouted, “Hey, is that water cold?”

“Not cold, it’s refreshing!” Old Liu wiped water from his face, grinning contentedly. “We haven't had a bath in ages, don’t you think?”

“Then hurry up and jump…”